How to get a car dealer licence in SA
In South Australia you need a second-hand vehicle dealer licence from Consumer and Business Services (CBS) if you buy, sell or offer for sale 4 or more vehicles in 12 months. You must be 18 or over and fit and proper, you pay an annual compensation fund fee, and dealing without a licence carries a maximum penalty of $150,000 for an individual’s first offence.
- Buying, selling or offering 4 or more vehicles in 12 months means you need a licence. You and a close associate together at 6 or more both need one.
- You must be 18 or over and fit and proper. Dishonesty convictions in the past 10 years may stop you.
- Companies need a licence for the company and a separate licence for the manager.
- For 2026-27 you pay a $375 application fee and a $577 (individual) or $868 (company) licence fee, plus a $200 annual compensation fund fee ($60 for motorcycles only).
Who needs a second-hand vehicle dealer licence
You must have a licence if you buy, sell or offer for sale 4 or more vehicles in 12 months. If you and a close associate (such as your spouse, partner, brother or sister) together offer to buy or sell 6 or more cars in 12 months, you both need a licence.
Sole traders, companies, partnerships and motor wreckers are covered.
Licence types
- Individual or company dealer licence for motor vehicles and motorcycles, or for motorcycles only.
- Manager licence: a company must have its business run and supervised by a licensed individual, so the company and the manager hold separate licences. A manager-only licence doesn’t pay the compensation fund fee.
Eligibility and fit and proper rules
- You must be 18 or older.
- You must be a fit and proper person to hold a licence.
- You may not be able to register if you, or a company director, have been convicted of an indictable offence of dishonesty, or a summary offence of dishonesty in the past 10 years.
- Include a National Police Certificate no more than 12 months old with your application.
Training and qualifications
The CBS licence page doesn’t list a mandatory training course or qualification. Check with CBS on 131 882 before you apply.
Fees
You pay an application fee, a licence fee, then an annual fee each year, plus an annual compensation fund fee. The compensation fund fee is $200 if you sell motor vehicles and $60 if you sell motorcycles only, and you pay only one compensation fund fee a year however many premises you have.
| Item (from 1 July 2026) | Individual | Company |
|---|---|---|
| Application fee | $375 | $375 |
| Licence fee, motor vehicles | $577 | $868 |
| Licence fee, motorcycles only | $275 | $402 |
| Total to apply, motor vehicles | $952 | $1,243 |
| Compensation fund fee (yearly) | $200 ($60 motorcycles only) | $200 ($60 motorcycles only) |
These amounts come from the Second-hand Vehicle Dealers (Fees) Notice 2026 and the SA.GOV.AU licence page. Fees are set each year by notice, so confirm them with CBS before you apply.
Processing time
CBS doesn’t publish a processing time. Contact CBS on 131 882 or occupational@sa.gov.au.
Premises
The address where you sell vehicles must be registered with CBS. You can register it when you apply for the licence.
Ongoing obligations
- Annual fee: licensed dealers pay the prescribed fee each year, and the compensation fund contribution is paid at renewal.
- Duty to repair: depends on the sale price. Vehicles sold for up to $3,000 have no duty to repair but must be roadworthy at sale; vehicles from $3,001 to $6,000 carry 2 months or 3,000 km. Since 1 September 2025 buyers can no longer waive the duty to repair.
- Form 3 notice: display the prescribed notice to purchaser on each vehicle (updated September 2025), and keep the dealer’s copy.
- Second-hand Vehicles Compensation Fund: buyers who can’t recover a loss from a dealer can claim against the fund your contributions pay into.
- Salespeople: you must not employ a salesperson who has been convicted of certain dishonesty offences or is suspended or disqualified from some occupations. CBS’s pages don’t describe a separate salesperson licence, so check with CBS before you hire.
Penalties for unlicensed dealing
Carrying on business as a dealer, or holding yourself out as one, without a licence is an offence under section 7 of the Second-hand Vehicle Dealers Act 1995. Higher penalties started on 1 July 2025: for an individual, the maximum is $150,000 for a first or second offence, and $250,000 or 2 years’ imprisonment (or both) for a third or later offence. A body corporate faces up to $500,000.
How to apply
Apply to CBS for an individual or company licence, register your trading address, and pay the application fee, licence fee and compensation fund fee. A company applies for its own licence and its manager applies for a manager licence.
What software you’ll need
Once you hold the licence, the paperwork is ongoing: a record of every car you buy and sell, the right warranty terms on each contract, PPSR checks, and licence and staff expiry dates. Our car dealer compliance tools log PPSR, odometer, written-off and stolen checks on every car, track licence and salesperson expiry dates, and keep a full audit trail.
SA compliance packs aren’t on the current roadmap. Queensland is live now, with NSW and VIC next, so ask us about SA in a demo.
For the detail, read our guides to the SA dealer stock register and SA statutory warranty.
How to apply for a second-hand vehicle dealer licence in SA
- Check you need oneYou need a licence to buy, sell or offer 4 or more vehicles in 12 months, or 6 or more together with a close associate.
- Check eligibilityConfirm you are 18 or over, fit and proper, and have no disqualifying dishonesty convictions.
- Pick the licenceChoose individual or company, and motor vehicles or motorcycles only. Companies also need a licensed manager.
- Register your premisesRegister the address where you sell vehicles when you apply.
- Apply to CBS and payLodge with CBS and pay the $375 application fee, the licence fee ($577 individual or $868 company in 2026-27) and the $200 compensation fund fee ($60 for motorcycles only).